What type of food storage function does the proventriculus serve in birds?

• A. Dissolves fats
• B. Stores food
• C. Grinds food
• D. Absorbs water

Answer: (B)

In birds, the proventriculus is the glandular stomach where chemical digestion begins and the ingested material is held briefly before it moves on. This chamber acts as a storage/holding area that lets gastric juices—acid and enzymes—start breaking down the food, preparing it for the grinding that happens in the next stomach segment, the ventriculus (gizzard). So the role described here is a storage-type function that sets up digestion. The other options don’t fit this stage: fats are digested later with bile and enzymes, grinding is done by the ventriculus, and water absorption occurs further along in the intestinal tract.